Power of the Mind
by ImmortalDragon2
Summary: "What if Ash started out with a different pokemon than Pikachu and his dream was to become the world's Greatest Pokemon master specializing in a single type of Pokemon?" - Set By: MathiasNightlord01 Ash's Chosen: Psychic Eventual AshxCyntia
1. Prologue: Cognito Ergo Sum

**Power of the Mind - Ash's Different Starter Challenge**

_"What if Ash started out with a different pokemon than Pikachu and his dream was to become the world's Greatest Pokemon master specializing in a single type of Pokemon?" _**_- Set By: MathiasNightlord01  
_**

**Theme: (Variant of Theme B) Ash has always wanted to be a Pokémon Master, but when he came across an injured Ralts, he couldn't help but help it recover from its injuries, since then Ash decided to use only Psychic Pokémon in his quest to become a Master and in order to do that, he began learning everything he could on Psychic Pokémon, and how to care for them, from a mysterious stranger's dropped book.  
**

**Eventual AshxCynthia; but not until he meets her in Sinnoh  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, that right is reserved for Satoshi Tajiri and Nintendo, nor do I own any of the characters therein.  
**

* * *

**Prologue: **_Cognito Ergo Sum_  
**Word Count: **_1539_

* * *

_"Cognito Ergo Sum - I think, therefore I am."  
_

* * *

**It** was a dark day at the Ketchum residence and not simply due to the stormy weather that raged outside, but inside the house, two raised voices competed with each other to be heard, a female and a male. The female, a young Delia Ketchum aged just 22 years old did not like the fact that her husband continually harassed her to give him her five-year-old son, Ash who was sleeping soundly.

Soon enough the male lost his temper and hit Delia hard, knocking her backwards, with a hard crack, Delia made contact with the wall and sliding down it she rasped "Get out; now!" The male sneered at her before turning around and leaving, not once looking back.

Ash, who had woken from the commotion, tentatively made his way downstairs in his blue pyjamas to see his mum lying semi-unconsciously in a small pool of her blood, he frantically called for help as he raced out of the house and into the wilderness beyond the edge of Pallet Town, there, exhausted and lost, he fell asleep.

**-Elsewhere-**

Just a few miles inwardly, deeper into the forest, two shady operatives were waiting for a pickup from Hoenn; apparently this Pokémon was to be delivered to the boss himself in Viridian City and these two had been chosen, despite their relative new status within the criminal organisation.

Suddenly the noise of a helicopter broke the silence of the forest, waking the young Ash and informing the two operatives that their package had arrived, carefully taking it from the harness it was strapped to and lowered from the belly of the aircraft, they could see why it was so valuable, inside the steel cage was an ice-lining that protected against a very young oddly-coloured Ralts, and a Dawn Stone, which accompanied the box.

The helicopter flew away after delivering the package and the forest, once again, descended back into silence.

**-Later-**

Ash awoke at the noise of the helicopter, but was disorientated by the forest, by the time he'd managed to find his way to the source of the noise, the clearing was empty, except for a small, shiny stone that reflected light that resembled that of the first rays of dawn. Pocketing the unusual stone, Ash heard a rustling in the bushes, but nothing emerged so, plucking up his courage, he pushed open the bushes to reveal a very young and injured Ralts, covered in ice shards.

The strangest thing about that particular Ralts was its colouring, instead of the traditional green hair colouring, this particular Ralts had blue hair colouring, indicating that it was, in fact a Shiny Pokémon, not that Ash had any idea at five years old of what was and was not a shiny Pokémon, all Ash knew was, he had to help it.

Lifting the injured Ralts, Ash ran as fast as his legs could carry him and eventually found himself on Route 1, just outside of Pallet Town, where a commotion was unfolding as two Nurse Joys were looking after his mum and two or three Officer Jenny's were there taking witness statements and interviews on the street.

Rushing to the Nurse Joy closest to his mother, he shyly pulled at the woman's dress and when she turned to look at him, he hid the Ralts, not wanting her to take it away from him and spoke quickly "Please help her, Miss Joy, she's my mum." Ash was taught from an early age, that if you didn't know whether or not a female was married, to always call her Miss or Ms, but Ash always stumbled over Ms.

Nurse Joy smiled at the young boy and replied kindly. "Your mum took a nasty knock, but hopefully she'll be up on her feet soon, I just hope we never hear from the…" at this she trailed off, not wanting the five-year-old to hear the expletive before resuming "Anyway, you go inside and we'll have your mum healed up in no time."

Ash nodded and raced inside, the injured Ralts in tow. Laying the Pokémon in his bath, he grabbed the largest ice shard and began the long process of removing as much as he could, it took him a few hours, but at least the Ralts was showing a marked improvement, especially when he ran warm water over its cuts.

Ash's mum came home later that evening fully healed from her ordeal and began making dinner, having never known Ash had been out at all due to her concussion she shouted up to him "Ash, honey, I'm making steak for dinner tonight"

Ash grinned and fist pumped, his mum made the juiciest steak in town, having been known for her restaurant that she'd closed down for the weekend; he then concentrated solely on the still injured Ralts, and using his mum's tweezers, extracted the last shard of ice from its body, Ash then grabbed a sponge, and dabbing it in warm water, he applied it to the cuts.

Ash searched his pockets to see what else he could use to help when his hand laid upon a golden berry that had a lemony smell to it, cutting off a slice with his fingers; he fed it to the Ralts, and slowly with each segment, the Ralts' injuries seemed to fade and some even disappeared.

The berry consumed, all Ash could do now was continue to monitor the Ralts' progress and help it where necessary. Later that evening, after dinner had been consumed, Ash snuck out of his house and across the street to Professor Oak's laboratory; there he bumped into a brown-haired young boy about the same age as him and both young boys shouted out in unison "Who're you?"

The brown haired kid then impatiently began speaking again, without waiting for a response from Ash. "My name's Gary Oak and _**I**_ live here, what about you?"

"I'm Ash Ketchum, I'm only across the street from you, please you've gotta' let me take some medicine." Ash replied as only a five-year-old could, by blurting out the exact reason he was there.

Gary's youthful face scowled and he crossed his arms "And why should I? You're just a silly little boy; my gramps is the best Pokémon professor ever." With that final word, young Gary Oak turned on the spot and left Ash in front of the Professor's lab.

Ash, however was furious at Gary's attitude, he was a big meanie; so plucking up his courage, Ash stole into the lab and made away with a few Potions and a Revive that Professor Oak kept in case of emergencies.

As Ash began to leave, he heard a noise so, spinning around, he was confronted by an agape Gary, who'd just watched him take the items from his Gramps. "You… you stole that" he said, not leaving Ash any chance to defend himself "I'm telling on you." Gary spluttered and then ran off, obviously to wake his Grandpa.

Taking this as his cue, Ash bolted as if an all-powerful Legendary was on his rear, and he made it home in record time, he even slunk past his mum, who was busy watching a show on their TV, and made his way to the Ralts in his bathtub.

As Ash applied the first of his stolen goods, the injured Ralts bolted upright, dazed and confused; the Ralts quickly assessed that it was somewhere it had never been and was frightened by Ash with the potion in his hand.

Ash calmly moved around the Ralts slowly, spraying the Potion onto the injured areas, while at all times keeping both hands up to show he meant no harm.

The Ralts felt its injuries heal as Ash sprayed the Potion onto it, and it knew instantly that this human was going to look after it properly, and so the Ralts snuggled in to Ash, making him wet in the process.

Soon the Potion had run out, and Ash leant down and pulled out the plug, allowing the brown, grimy water that began to coalesce under the Ralts to drain away; he then reached for a fluffy towel, his own red one did nicely and wrapped it around the Ralts. The red of the towel, even though it clashed horribly with the Ralts' hair, was useful for ensuring the Ralts' blood was not spotted by his mum, who'd probably freak out if she'd known.

Lifting the now clean Ralts out, he took it back to his room, where he'd kept a stash of food that he'd been keeping since his mum made way too much for the two of them to eat, and nearly always kept her leftovers within his easy reach, she passed off the missing leftovers as the fact that he was hungry later and he'd fed himself the leftovers, not realising of-course that Ash wasn't truly a big eater, he'd just kept the leftovers just in case.

The Ralts devoured the food rapidly and a burgeoning bond tied Ash and the Ralts inseparably tight to one another, he'd cared for it, he'd cleaned it and fed it, that was the last thing for the Ralts, it decided that no matter what, it would stay with Ash, come Hell or High Water.

* * *

**Author's Note: **With the exams looming, I won't be able to update in any great speed, so I have removed my other stories until such time as I can go at them again; I'll probably do some touching up on them while they're offline anyway. Watch my Userspace. This story was a challenge, so hopefully I can manage doing this, but again, it'll be slow goings.


	2. Chapter 1: Meditation

**Power of the Mind - Ash's Different Starter Challenge**

_"What if Ash started out with a different pokemon than Pikachu and his dream was to become the world's Greatest Pokemon master specializing in a single type of Pokemon?" _**_- Set By: MathiasNightlord01  
_**

**Theme: (Variant of Theme B) Ash has always wanted to be a Pokémon Master, but when he came across an injured Ralts, he couldn't help but help it recover from its injuries, since then Ash decided to use only Psychic Pokémon in his quest to become a Master and in order to do that, he began learning everything he could on Psychic Pokémon, and how to care for them, from a mysterious stranger's dropped book.  
**

**Eventual AshxCynthia; but not until he meets her in Sinnoh  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, that right is reserved for Satoshi Tajiri and Nintendo, nor do I own any of the characters therein.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: **_Meditation (5 years later)_  
**Word Count: **_1389_

* * *

_"Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forwards and what holds you back." - The Buddha_

* * *

**Things** were mostly the same in the Ketchum residence since that fateful day, five years ago; Delia had never truly recovered from her ordeal and though all physical evidence had been healed, it had left her detached from the world and, more importantly, her son.

Not everything was the same however, for one the new addition of a Blue-haired Ralts remained a secret that Ash kept from his mum at all times; though he'd hoped that after visiting Professor Oak to obtain his trainer licence, he could officially show her without her freaking out.

Something else within Ash changed as well; when he was five, he'd wanted to grow up to become a Pokémon Master, catching every known Pokémon and training them to be the very best, but now he couldn't help but feel that it was an insult to his partner to go with any other but Psychic Pokémon.

This was further compounded by a day just two years ago…

_**~ Flashback, Spotlight! ~**_

"Come on, Ralts; let's go play." A young eight-year-old Ash Ketchum said to his best friend, a shiny Ralts, as they had woken up to find that that particular day in June was sunny and warm.

The duo made their way into the forest they found each other in three years prior, something just drew them to go there that day, and they soon discovered why.

A cloaked person stood in the shadow of the forest, their dark silhouette contrasting against the verdant greens of the forest; this shady person turned to Ash and then to his comrade.

The person took a double take at the blue Ralts before smiling and retrieving a ball from seemingly nowhere.

Ash noticed the ball being opened, but he didn't recognise the Pokémon that came out, and before he could ask, the shady person disappeared, leaving a heavy book labelled "Psychic Pokémon and how to train them", the author's name was "Mr E." Ash took the book, intending to return it, but never saw who it was that left it in the first place.

_**~ Okay, Flashback, that's enough. Return! ~**_

Since that day, Ash took himself to task to learn the book inside and out, learning that his Ralts was male and recently he'd found some unusual clothing in a shop that had opened and closed last Halloween, the clothing in particular was a majority of blue in colour with hints of grey and yellow, Ash had even found a nifty hat that he took a shine to; putting on the clothing it reminded him of the legends he had read while young about Aura Masters.

This particular day to come was special, Ash had thought to set his alarm early to make it to Professor Oak's lab to receive his Pokédex and Pokéballs, however Ash's luck was against him that day as a power cut reset his alarm, causing him to oversleep.

"Oh no! I'm late. Why didn't my alarm wake me?" Ash moaned as he flung himself out of bed and in a flurry of activity, Ash got dressed while taking breakfast for him and Ralts, then he sprinted out of the house, hiding Ralts from his mum by blocking her view of the Pokémon.

Arriving at Professor Oak's at just after 11 A.M, Ash panted as he tried to catch his breath when he heard a familiar voice "You're late, Ashy-boy; I've already got my starter. You're the butt of the joke… again." It was Gary, who really hadn't grown up in the five-years since they'd first met and was still an arrogant arse, all-be-it one with a group of cheering fan girls.

Ash growled "Well, you'll see, I'll beat you in a Pokémon battle when I'm a trainer." He replied.

Gary laughed "Tch, yeah right. My gramps doesn't even have a starter for you, you're so late. See ya later, Ashy-boy" he ended, driving off in one of his grandpa's cars, the cheerleaders in tow.

Ash sprinted inside and apologised to Professor Oak for his late arrival "S…Sorry Professor, I… I overslept; please say I can still be a trainer." He panted.

Professor Samuel Oak nodded "Yes, though I don't have any more starter Pokémon for you… Hmm, actually, I may have something out back…" he said, and made to move off.

"WAIT!" Ash shouted, causing Professor Oak to stop dead "Can't I use one of my own?"

Professor Oak looked at Ash in astonishment "What do you mean? I don't recall you having any other Pokemon than Delia's Mimey, and he's no battler." He retorted.

"Yeah, well…" Ash said, sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "I kinda kept him a secret, come on out, Ralts, the Professor would like to meet you." At that, the shy Ralts that had hidden itself in among Professor Oak's machines tentatively stepped out and hugged Ash for safety.

"Oh my… a Shiny Ralts… however did you find him?" The professor asked and then listened as Ash re-told his tale. "Ah. They sound like Team Rocket, a very tough criminal organisation; you were lucky not to be spotted by them." The Professor then walked over to a table containing a red object and a grey device.

Giving Ash the red object, the Professor said "This is a Pokédex; it stores, records and retains all of the data about all the kinds of Pokémon that you could meet in the world, of course it's empty right now, since I've just registered it to you, but with this device…" at that he paused to point out the grey device he'd kept, "I'll register your Ralts to you and your Pokédex will have its first entry."

He briefly pointed the device at the Ralts and in a second, there was a ping from Ash's Pokédex. "There we go, now here are seven Pokéballs, you should use one of them on Ralts to protect him from Pokémon Hunters and teams like the Rockets; now go out and let your Pokémon journey begin." The professor finished with a flourish, leaving Ash with the Ralts.

"What do you say Ralts, ready to come with me on an epic journey to become the best in the world?" Ash asked the young Pokémon, which nodded and tapped a Pokéball that Ash had been given.

In an instant a red light enveloped the Ralts, before sucking it inside the Pokéball. Unlike conventional times, this Pokéball did not wobble; this was due to the fact that the Ralts willingly allowed himself to be captured, instead of fighting the ball.

Ash then took the ball and threw it, releasing Ralts back out. Seeing the Ralts look a bit wobbly, then fall over, Ash knelt down and picked the Ralts up. "Was that a bit disorientating, being in there?" he asked; to which the Ralts gave a very rapid nod. "Okay then, I won't use it unless you're in danger, okay?" Ash added that, and seeing the Ralts nod again, he knew it was a wise decision to make and he could easily carry Ralts if he needed to.

Later, Ash had returned to his house and showed his mum the Ralts, and after explaining how he found it abandoned and injured five years ago, his mum wasn't as angry as he thought she'd be. "Well, why didn't you tell me? I could have let Mimey help you." She asked, then sighed "Anyway, he looks healthy enough, make sure you take good care of my Ashy, you hear?" she said, talking to the Ralts, who nodded, snuggling up to Ash.

Ash then told his mum that he was about to leave for his adventure and wanted to let her know he'd be gone for a while, but hopefully not too long, after all, the Indigo League Conference was only three months away, but if he missed it, there'd be another in six months. "Wait, before you go, take this…" Delia said, and handed Ash a badge case, to display his gym badges in, and a purse filled with a few Poké-dollars that Delia had saved up. "You'll need it more than me, just be sure to take clean undies, okay?"

Ash groaned "Mum!" he whined "You're embarrassing me." Ash hugged Delia none-the-less and set off in the general direction of Viridian City and hopefully his first Gym badge.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Okay, second chapter's up; a few hidden gems here and there about some of the people Ash will encounter along his journey. The author of the book, a Mr E is a play on the word Mystery, as well as being the first initial of Sabrina's Dad (since Satoshi and Pokémon never truly gave him a name, I'm going to say his first initial is 'E')

I hope this chapter has answered a few questions my reviewers had; like the gender of the Ralts, though I thought that might have already been obvious considering the Dawn Stone Ash found that accompanied the Ralts in the first place.

**For Shin'en and Tamara:** Remember that some of these will be dual-types; like Gallade is part-fighting; Lugia part-flying (though Water is also a Tertiary unofficial type there); Celebi (part-grass); Victini (part-fire); heck the Lati's are part-dragon.


	3. Author's Note: Excuses

**TAKE NOTICE:**

Let it be known that I'm slowly getting my mixed-up life back in one piece after the hectic examination period, which comprised most of the month of May.

I apologise for the lack of story writing since then as I have recently learnt that my nan had not been well and had been admitted into hospital.

This was a week ago... She's now passed on, so I must be strong for my mom and aunt as they grieve the loss.

Oddly (or not so, depending upon your point-of-view) this is the second death in my family in the last nine months. (Talk about your Annus Horriblis...)

Later in the month of June and towards July, I shall be attending Jury Duty, followed by a year at industrial placement, so look out for sporadic chapters later.

**Finally to all the people who are posting notices about the fact that FFNet are culling 'M - Rated' fics that contain excessive smut/lemons or violence:**

Look, it's not that I don't agree with you, it's just that writing stories with erotic or excessively violent scenes is against FFNet's ToS (Terms of Service)...

Parents can see what their kids are doing online and what do they see? Their kid is accessing potentially pornographic content. Then the parent will complain that their child is accessing age-inappropriate things.

Look at it from FFNet's point-of-view, they don't want to get their entire site shut down all because some twelve year old girl wants to play _"Harry Potter meets Edward Cullen"_ *Shudders* (I'm not anti-gay or anything, I just abhor Twilight, that and poor SPAG (Spelling, Punctuation And Grammar))

I'm not saying what FFNet have done is the right thing to do, just delete the story willy-nilly, because it's not and just creates bad blood between us FanFic writers and the website, but I believe they're not heartless fiends.

If you **REALLY** want to write smut/lemons/limes or excessive violence that would probably be classed as an "Adult" Fic, FFNet do have an "Adult" version called www . adult fan fiction . net (Delete the spaces)


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